Rogers Hall School - Splinters Yearbook (Lowell, MA)

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EVCLUTION As the public of today is well aware, Natalie Wood and Richard Breymer starred in the movie version of West Side Story. They are usually also aware that it was derived from the Broadway show of the same title, and most know that Leonard Bemstein composed the famous songs and lyrics. Yet few realize the interesting and historic background of its basic plot. Contrary to popular opinion, West Side Story was not derived solely from Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. It has been said: ML Laurent's book did not try to paraphrase the Romeo and Juliet Story, but instead used it as a reference point or suggestion for the development of the theme. One must also note the fact that Romeo and jttliet was not purely a Shakespearean creation, for the idea was captured from a myth of Ovid written in 8 A.D., the myth in this instance being Pyramus and Thisbef' If one is not familiar with Pyramus and Thisbe or Romeo and Iuliet but is familiar with West Side Story, one knows the basic plot of the two young people existing in the realm of forbidden love, their fleeting chance to escape the impending forces that are preventing this love from materializing into marriage, and the tragic ending of death. One thus has the information necessary for following this story back through the centuries. Ovid, as an individual, was interested in women and love. In 8 A.D. he was banished by the Emperor Augustus, because his works were too corrupt for the Roman Youth! Pyramus and Thisbe was one of these works. Reflecting the atmosphere of that era, Pyramus and Thisbe was a myth to explain the color of the mulberry tree. It embodies a pledge of undying love, fiery passion, desire, and the search for happiness and unity. Yet the lovers had a barrier, for their parents forbade this love. Appointing a time and place to meet, the lovers were planning to run away. Yet as in Romeo and Iuliet and West Side Story, the tragic ending, culminating in death, was inevitable. Thisbe, upon waiting for her mate, was approached by a lion. In fear she Hed and dropped her cloak. When Pyramus arrived, he spotted the cloak and thinking his mate dead, killed himself with a dagger. Sensing all was safe, meanwhile, Thisbe returned, found Pyramus dead, and, in anguish, killed herself as well. William .Shakespeare, living in the sixteenth century, discovered the old myth and adapted it to the age in which he lived. He used the same plot, but he added the idea of chivalry. As the age was more complex, the story was more complex. Hatred and jealousy were involved and the desire for

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FATE Elucidate please, Why is it so? How to comprehend, , Please let me know- Can it be altered? By determination some say. Are you as bewildered, By this mysterious, veiled way? ANNE I-IOCKMEYER '63 REFLECTIONS ON THE SPACE AGE I fear to look toward heaven now Upon a dark, clear night, Seeking stars and finding but A roaming satellite. I fear that in a year or so, To take the dear moon's place, Will spin a thousand man-made stars In God's once-ordered space. Rurnns POGUE '62

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self-determination was demonstrated. The hatred and the jealousy were not in Ovid as they were in Romeo and Juliet and West Side Story, but the desire for self-determination was apparent in all three. Here, too, the search for happiness led,to inevitable death, the same ending as in Ovid. Yet to reHect the changed times, Shakespeare eliminated the lion and substituted a sleeping potion. As further indices of the changed times, a fight between jealous suitors took place, and the final destruction was achieved by the use of poison in place of the dagger. The Shakespearean era passed, but Shakespeare's works endured. They can apply to life today. Even though Mr. Laurent used the plot as a reference point or suggestion for the development of his theme, West Side Story could well be considered a modern Romeo and Juliet. The hatred is there-the hatred between the parents of the lovers, the jealousy is there- the jealousy between two suitors, the desire for self-determination is there- the resolve to take the fleeting chance for happiness by running away, and lastly, the tragedy is there-death. The ending is similar to the previous two but altered somewhat to meet a later age. The lion and the sleeping potion are replaced by a gang fight, the expression of jealousy is replaced by a struggle with knives instead of with swords, and the destruction by daggers and potion is replaced by that of a gun. Yet contrary to the other two, the heroine lives on. Why is this, one may ask? What are the three trying to prove? Could the conclusion of West Side Story indicate that in our age the idea of self-sacrifice for love has diminished in importance? Are we able to recognize the death of a lover isn't the end of the world? Is it that as human beings we are better able to face reality and to recognize that under any circumstances life must go on? ELIZABETH SEMPLE '62 SPECULATIONS OF A SOPHOMORE What is humor? Is it the character of a person or the expression and wording of a joke? What is laughter? Is it that overwhelming feeling that completely takes you over or the boisterous noise that shows understanding? What is fear? Is it the things you can't explain or the somethings you can't face? What is emotion? Is it what one lets in from without or what one must let out from within? VIRGINIA 'MARTIN '64